Page 25 of The Bratva Enforcer and His Virgin Bride

Lie.

Manipulation wrapped in concern.

But deliberate manipulation is still leverage, and he knows it.

He folds his hands together again.

“Marry Sofia immediately,” he says. “And I’ll send you everything you need to know about her.”

A pause.

“As soon as the marriage is complete,” he continues, “I’ll tell you everything.”

I turn to leave.

“Lukyan.”

I stop at the sound of my name.

“Don’t you even want to see a picture of the girl you’re about to marry?”

There’s amusement in his voice now. Quiet. Curious. Like he’s waiting to see if I’m human after all.

I almost tell him no.

I don’t care what she looks like. This marriage is a transaction. A signature. A lock placed around a problem before another man gets his hands on it.

But Karl is already holding out his phone.

And there she is.

The photograph is grainy. Passport-style. Bad lighting. No makeup. Blond hair pulled back away from her face.

But I recognize her instantly.

Maybe it’s the eyes.

Maybe it’s the strange, almost painful innocence in them. The kind that feels untouched by the world. Untouched by men like me.

Or maybe it’s because I haven’t stopped thinking about her since the bookstore.

The girl who looked at me as if she could sense something rotten beneath my skin.

The bookstore girl.

For the first time since walking into this office, something inside me shifts.

Small.

Dangerous.

Fuck my life.

Chapter 3 – Sofia

New York is never quiet, especially not at night. But there’s nothing I can do to change that other than install heavy black curtains to block out as much noise as I can.

I can still hear muted traffic below. A distant siren somewhere I can’t place. The soft hum of my fridge reminds me that I should probably replace it soon.